A Bride for Isaac

Intro: Last week we looked at the account of God granting Abraham land in the land of Promise. We talked about the idea that God will do what God has promised in His own way and His one time. Chapter 24 begins with this same idea.

Genesis 24:1 CSB

Abraham was now old, getting on in years, and the Lord had blessed him in everything.

There is a completeness intended in this statement. We see the foreshadowing of the death of Abraham. He is now old yet God had done all that He promised to do. Now the promise continues through Abraham’s son Isaac. So we begin to see the narrative theme begin to transition from Abraham to Abraham’s descendents.

Big Idea: Today’s text is one of the longest narratives in Genesis. In fact the details of how God leads Abrahams’ servant to find Isaac a wife are recounted in full twice in this passage.

Now for just a moment of instruction. Whenever you see repeated ideas, words, or stories in a passage. It should alert you the author is doing it on purpose. The author is highlighting the purpose of the text.

This is how we can now that the theme of today’s text:

God's providence is at work in the intricate details of our lives, guiding us and fulfilling His promises. God’s timing can be trusted.

1.The Mystery of Prepared Paths and Prayer

Have you ever wondered how prayer and providence intersect? I mean how is it what we pray for comes to pass and yet perfectly fits into God’s plan? Yet there are places in scripture like James 4:2 That suggest that if we do not pray certain things will not take place.

James 4:2 (CSB)

You desire and do not have......You do not have because you do not ask.

So we see this account in Genesis where we see this great mystery of intersection. Where prayer and providence collide.

Genesis 24:1–14 CSB

Abraham was now old, getting on in years, and the Lord had blessed him in everything. Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, “Place your hand under my thigh, and I will have you swear by the Lord, God of heaven and God of earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I live, but will go to my land and my family to take a wife for my son Isaac.” The servant said to him, “Suppose the woman is unwilling to follow me to this land? Should I have your son go back to the land you came from?” Abraham answered him, “Make sure that you don’t take my son back there. The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from my native land, who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘I will give this land to your offspring’—he will send his angel before you, and you can take a wife for my son from there. If the woman is unwilling to follow you, then you are free from this oath to me, but don’t let my son go back there.” So the servant placed his hand under his master Abraham’s thigh and swore an oath to him concerning this matter. The servant took ten of his master’s camels, and with all kinds of his master’s goods in hand, he went to Aram-naharaim, to Nahor’s town. At evening, the time when women went out to draw water, he made the camels kneel beside a well outside the town. “Lord, God of my master Abraham,” he prayed, “make this happen for me today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. I am standing here at the spring where the daughters of the men of the town are coming out to draw water. Let the girl to whom I say, ‘Please lower your water jug so that I may drink,’ and who responds, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels also’—let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”

So as we just mentioned Abraham is getting older. There is now no matriarch in the family for Sarah has died. No Doubt Abraham wants to see His son Isaac married. He wants to see firsthand the fulfillment of God that his lineage would continue through Isaac.

So Abraham calls a trusted servant and gives him these instructions. Stay away from Canaanite women. Later on Deuteronomy 7 God himself forbids intermarriage with the Canaanites and well as other groups because he said their daughters would turn their husbands hearts away from worshipping Yahweh, God.

So The servant makes this oath and travels back to Abrahams hometown. Once he arrives, he prays this prayer.

Genesis 24:12–14 CSB

“Lord, God of my master Abraham,” he prayed, “make this happen for me today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. I am standing here at the spring where the daughters of the men of the town are coming out to draw water. Let the girl to whom I say, ‘Please lower your water jug so that I may drink,’ and who responds, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels also’—let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”

Notice with me that when he prays their is no pretense.

The Prayer is very honest. Lord, God or more literally Yahweh, Elohim. Yahweh is His name, Elohim or God is his title. He says make this happen for me and for my master. His motivations in prayer are right out in the open. He doesn’t make any pretense or pray from false motives.

I would suggest to you today that God knows our hearts and does not respond to prayers prayed from false motives.

But also notice that in his prayer he doesn’t call Yahweh his God, but rather Abrahams. It seems at this point he is but a witness of Yahweh and not yet a servant of him.

I often wonder in churches today why it seems there are many witnesses of God and yet few servants of him. This servant obviously believed in Abraham’s God but yet there is no real claim of Yahweh being his God.

Did you know it’s possible to be a witness to God and believe in him without ever making Him your God? Biblically the difference is repentance. Those who repent see themselves as a servant of the most High. They see God as their master. If someone were to ask you in what way do you serve God, What would your answer be?

While we are not saved by works, as James puts it, our works show we have faith. If you are not serving God is the type of faith you have perhaps more of a witness to him rather than a servant of him? scripture is clear there is only one type of saving faith, the type the leads to submission and service.

So what type of faith do you have?

But then looks what happens...

Genesis 24:15 CSB

Before he had finished speaking, there was Rebekah—daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor—coming with a jug on her shoulder.

Think about this!

This means that before he had prayed God was already actively answering his prayer. Most likely before he had uttered a word, God had worked the timing together perfectly down to the second. How in the world does God do these things?

Quite often before we pray for provision God is already prompting the heart of the provider. It’s amazing.

Now there are some theologians that try and act as if they have God all figured out. That God has predestined all things to take place and therefore prayer is just a formality recognizing God’s authority and will. Everything will happen that was meant to happen no matter what.

Yet that isn’t what scriptures says with impunity. There are times where scripture seems to suggest that if we do not ask like in James that we will not have.

There are other passages that suggest the same thing by Jesus own words.

Matthew 9:37–38 CSB

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”

This verse seems to suggest that prayer is the catalyst behind a multitude of laborers. Prayer directly affects the outcome of both the laborers and the harvest.

It seems the intervention of God into human affairs is at times directly affected by God’s people praying in the will of God.

So then how are we to understand the providence of God, His will, and prayer? How do all of these things intersect to accomplish God’s plan.

I’m going to give you a very theological answer....

I don’t know. But I would tell you that God will accomplish all that He intends in His own way and in His own time. Yet he has chosen to include man in that process.

It’s a wonderful mystery. I would caution you to be skeptical of teachers, pastors, and theologians that claim to have this all figured out.

There are many so that will try to place God’s ways and providence into nice neat theological packages. These theological systems will often either make God seem impotent or Make God out to be a dictator.

Church family, The ways of God cannot be comprehended by mortal man. This is a mystery that should inspire awe and reverence at how great our God is. The more we spend time arguing over man-made systems of theology whether Reformed or Armenian the more we lose sight of the greatness of God and this beautiful mystery of his providence.

This is a perplexing mystery that men have been debating for hundreds of years.

This is what I believe. When we pray it makes a difference. When God tells us to choose he means choose. When God decrees something it will come to pass, no matter what. How else can we explain the timing of God in an account like this?

So are you praying?

But next I want you to see...

2. God’s Precise Providence and Rebekah’s Prompt Response

Genesis 24:15–27 CSB

Before he had finished speaking, there was Rebekah—daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor—coming with a jug on her shoulder. Now the girl was very beautiful, a virgin—no man had been intimate with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jug, and came up. Then the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please let me have a little water from your jug.” She replied, “Drink, my lord.” She quickly lowered her jug to her hand and gave him a drink. When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I’ll also draw water for your camels until they have had enough to drink.” She quickly emptied her jug into the trough and hurried to the well again to draw water. She drew water for all his camels while the man silently watched her to see whether or not the Lord had made his journey a success. As the camels finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing half a shekel, and for her wrists two bracelets weighing ten shekels of gold. “Whose daughter are you?” he asked. “Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?” She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.” She also said to him, “We have plenty of straw and feed and a place to spend the night.” Then the man knelt low, worshiped the Lord, and said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not withheld his kindness and faithfulness from my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”

Again not only is the timing of God impeccable. But His preparation of the heart of those whom we pray for coincides with this providential guidance.

I mean the fact that Rebekah does exactly what the servant prays for is just amazing and inexplicable.

I wonder if we really prayed for our lost family, friends, and neighbors if God wouldn’t do something similar in our lives and in the lives of those we pray for.

Pastor Brett are you trying to tell me that through prayer God will orchestrate the timing of the world in such a way that through prayer When I speak of his gospel, others hearts are prepared for that exact minute. Yes. I don't know how He does it but yes.....God can and Does routinely do these type of things.

But when moments like this happens we need to share it.

3.Sharing the story of God’s perfect providence and prayer can inspire others to believe and trust.

In Genesis 24:42-49 Abraham’s servant recounts the entire story to Laban and Bethuel. Look at their response.

Genesis 24:50–54 CSB

Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the Lord; we have no choice in the matter. Rebekah is here in front of you. Take her and go, and let her be a wife for your master’s son, just as the Lord has spoken.” When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed to the ground before the Lord. Then he brought out objects of silver and gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious gifts to her brother and her mother. Then he and the men with him ate and drank and spent the night. When they got up in the morning, he said, “Send me to my master.”

How often when we pray for specific things do we keep the fulfillment of it to our selves? Or worse yet we relegate God’s answer to coincidence instead of giving him the credit.

So we see here the a stranger shows up with a big ask. Hey give me your daughter and I am going to taker her to off someplace. Now let me remind you that human trafficking during this time was pretty normal. The buying and selling of woman especially pretty ones was pretty normal.

So what convinced them? The servants story of how God answered his prayer.

You see ultimately your answered prayer is not just for you its to spread the glory of God and instill trust in others as well.

4. Providence's Perfect Fulfillment in Preparing Rebekah’s heart.

Genesis 24:54–67 CSB

Then he and the men with him ate and drank and spent the night. When they got up in the morning, he said, “Send me to my master.” But her brother and mother said, “Let the girl stay with us for about ten days. Then she can go.” But he responded to them, “Do not delay me, since the Lord has made my journey a success. Send me away so that I may go to my master.” So they said, “Let’s call the girl and ask her opinion.” They called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She replied, “I will go.” So they sent away their sister Rebekah with the one who had nursed and raised her, and Abraham’s servant and his men. They blessed Rebekah, saying to her: Our sister, may you become thousands upon ten thousands. May your offspring possess the city gates of their enemies. Then Rebekah and her female servants got up, mounted the camels, and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left. Now Isaac was returning from Beer-lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negev region. In the early evening Isaac went out to walk in the field, and looking up he saw camels coming. Rebekah looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she got down from her camel and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?” The servant answered, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. Then the servant told Isaac everything he had done. And Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah and took Rebekah to be his wife. Isaac loved her, and he was comforted after his mother’s death.

Application: This passage reminds us that God is actively involved in our lives, even in the smallest details. It encourages us to trust in His providential care and to seek His guidance in all aspects of our lives. We can trust in both the providence of God and that God answers prayer.

To the Lost: You are not here today by accident. God orchestrated this moment for you. Will you turn from your sin and put your trust in Jesus Christ today?

To the Believer: Are you praying and trust God? You can rest in his providential care.